1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates a method and system for detecting tampering related to attempts at reverse engineering of electronic circuits.
2. Description of the Related Art
Intellectual property is embodied in many forms and must be protected by diverse means. The development of solid-state electronics has lead to the incorporation of intellectual property into the design and programming of integrated circuits.
Reverse engineering is a process that is used to determine undisclosed details of a device design. When such intellectual property considerations are incorporated into an integrated circuit, competitors, analysts and others interested in determining the functional aspects of the integrated circuit very often resort to electronic forensic techniques to determine the underlying design considerations employed in the integrated circuits. Those attempting to access and study the integrated circuit may also be someone interested in determining the functional aspect of a system in which the integrated circuit is used, for example, one interested in determining the functional aspect of an integrated circuit or an electronic system which incorporates the integrated circuit.
While reverse engineering is at times employed for legitimate purposes, reverse engineering is often employed by competitors as a means of capturing and exploiting the intellectual technology of others. As such, there is a need for techniques and processes that protect products and technology from reverse engineering. Processes and techniques for protecting technology from reverse engineering are sometime referred to as anti-tamper (AT) technologies.